2016 Year in Review: Point Roberts Historical Society

By Pauline DeHaan

We had a fairly busy summer season starting with a delightful visit with Garry and Maria Roberts from Australia, orchestrated by Pat Grubb. Garry is a direct descendant of Capt. Henry Roberts, after whom Point Roberts is named. In appreciation of their visit to Point Roberts, they have sent a print of a painting done by Capt. Roberts in the 1700s, which can be viewed in the history room at the community center.

The This Old House series was presented at 2 p.m. on Saturday Market days and was well attended. Historical Society docents were on hand to answer any questions. One of those Saturdays was dedicated to John Horton, marine artist, who spoke on the early exploration of the Pacific Northwest coast by Capt. George Vancouver and others. The Horton art book is for sale at the Blue Heron Gallery.

A self-guided walking tour was set up on the Gulf Road Fourth of July parade route with photos and signage in front of historic buildings. We had Tom Carney talk about his fishing days in the Bering Sea at our November meeting. It was a very interesting topic, especially linked to many of the Point Roberts fishermen having fished the Alaskan waters over the years.

We hope the community is enjoying the photo, vintage hat, vintage postcard and Christmas displays at the community center. We will be taking a break until the March AGM and hope to see some of you then.